obama intends to bring home 34,000 of them by this time next year. most u.s. combat troops are due home by the end of 2014. charlie d'agata is at our afghan bureau in the capital kabul and, charlie, i wonder, what is this going to mean to the troops on the ground? >> reporter: well, the key question, scott, is the time frame. any commanders here will tell you that they want as many boots on the ground for as long as they can, certainly through the summer and the fall when the fighting picks up against the taliban. and there's a lot of work to be done, especially along eastern afghanistan where insurgents have been infiltrating from safe havens in pakistan. they're holding territory there. they're launching attacks here in kabul. u.s. troops are also focused on the south around kandahar, the birthplace of the taliban. now, it's been announced that the afghans will be taking the lead in the spring. but what we've seen for ourselves is u.s. forces fighting right alongside them providing the firepower, air support and medical evacuation. >> pelley: charlie d'agata